











The moment we have all been waiting for! JIMMY VS NICK on Judge Rinder.
We filmed this over 3 years ago & it’s FINALLY airing! (Scraping the barrel) Nick is now in France, Jimmy in Australia.
All my British favs must join us for a viewing party. Watch Jimmy sue Nick, his ex boss for all his worth for trashing Jimmy’s room & leaving cat vomit, hair & more whilst he was in Australia.
Wondering why Nick got deported to Paris ? You’ll have to tune in to find out.
This is one fluffy episode you don’t want to miss
ITV 2pm February 2nd
It was the morning of Tuesday 17th of March. I was on my way from Bristol – Southampton to meet an engineer who was installing a new streaming service for our brewery.
This had been a scheduled meeting with myself & my boss.
My boss rang me the day before to let me know he would be self isolating as the COVID-19 situation was escalating & he would be able to come.
He let me know if I don’t feel comfortable taking public transport to not worry about it. At this point I wasn’t to fussed. The trains were already fairly empty from people already being asked to work from home where possible.
Its a 3hour journey from Bristol-Southampton thank to track work & rail replacement buses.
Half way through my journey I received 2 texts almost simultaneously from my Brother Dan & bro in law Sammy. TheY informed me that the Australian government urged all Australians abroad to come home now or risk being stranded/ cut off. I instantly rang my boss to explain the situation. He told me if I have to go, to just go! Although I knew ultimately it was my decision I just wanted to get his thoughts on the situation. He said if I need to turn back around now & head to the airport tonight or tomorrow to just do it.
I knew I had to act fast. I decided to carry on with my journey & meet the engineer out of respect as we had already rescheduled once. I spent the other half of the trip searching for flights from UK – Australia. I wasn’t surprised to see the flights were fairly reasonable priced considering the situation. Well the situation changed quickly , I guess I wasn’t the only Australian who got a text from their family about the news. Within 15 minutes of me searching for flights they had gone up £200.
I decided to go for Royal Brunei airline as it was a great value flight & also one of the shortest journeys. Flight was £750 1 way, Heathrow to Melbourne.
Flight booked. Shit is real! I’m heading back to Australia only 7 weeks of me returning back to UK. It’s a bit surreal.
I called Chloe immediately, she was shocked but understood. I returned home & started packing, I had less than 24 hours to pack up my life & get to the airport. Chloe was heading to London the following morning so it worked out well, her parents also live next to Heathrow. We were not even out of Bristol when I received a call from a London number, who could this be I thought.
It was a flight attendant from Royal Brunei, he let me know that I would not be able to board my flight due to new restrictions placed in that country. I was shocked, this was my worst fear. Before booking with Royal Brunei I looked at travel restrictions, a lot of airports were restricting customers even transitioning through their airport.
Although I went into panic mode, I thanked him for calling me & letting me know as soon as he did. Considering the amount of interruption and uncertainty in the travel industry going on I didn’t expect this kind of service.
I looked at the time, it was 11:30pm in Australia, I needed to let my family know that I am not allowed to board.
After calling all immediate family members with no answer, I finally got an answer from Aunty Megs. She told me she would try my sister Jessy, the only one without a mobile. She was able to get through to her landline & connect me with Sam!
Due to the short notice of these unexpected travel plans I didn’t have the funds to just fork out on another long haul flight.
I had rang the Australian embassy in London for advice, they were shocked that Royal Brunei were doing these restrictions & had not heard about them yet. Their advice was to book another commercial airline.
I managed to get a flight from London- Switzerland – Singapore – Sydney – Albury. FOUR flights and over 48 hours later I arrived home.
When I was checking in at Heathrow, I was told only Europeans were currently allowed to transit through Switzerland since I had an Australian passport I would not be able to board. Because I was a UK resident I was allowed to board! Phew!
The layover in Zurich was short, the flight was full of uncertain Italians trying to get back to Europe as all flights to Italy were being cancelled.
I knew the restrictions to transit through Singapore were changing fast, at the point of me boarding, no passenger that had recently visited France, Italy, Germany & Spain were allowed to transit. Another sigh of relief thank goodness I had not been there recently. Unfortunately for quite a few Australians were refused boarding to Singapore.
The flight from Switzerland to Singapore is a 12 hour journey, I knew potentially their could be new laws by the time I land. I knew UK was next on the list of restrictions. Thankfully it had not been on the list of countries yet!
Due to the restrictions, the flight was fairly empty and I was able to have a sleep.
I left at a time where UK prime mister Boris was giving vague guidelines on the British pubs. He recommended people avoid pubs, although had not yet shut them. When he announced this customers were cancelling their bookings in droves & takings were instantly down. Job losses were imminent. My employer City Pub Group PLC, would obviously have to scale back the business in order to survive. I said I would be more than happy to go back to bar tending, cleaning , dish washing through this time of uncertainly.
I also told my boss I am happy to take unpaid leave until everything settles. Of which was granted. This meant my job was secure.
I’d received this in writing promptly from my boss. This was reassuring as I had worked really hard the last 4 years to get to the position I was in. I could breathe a sigh of relief & continue my journey to Australia.
The day I arrived, it was announces pubs were closing in the UK. This was huge, its like ripping the heart out of the UK. Their culture, their life, my job, my way of life. I understand why. It still doesn’t make it any more shocking to me. An industry I grew up in, shut down with a few hours warning..
I knew Australia was heading that way..
Total cost to get home $3600.
I’m glad I acted fast, as of today there is no possible way to get from UK – Australia.
Written on day #4 of quarantine.
You’ve not made it in London until your face is on a taxi & double decker bus 🇬🇧 🚕 👨🏻
Sign up at movember.com
My live radio interview with BBC radio Bristol about what its like living with an invisible disability. I’m grateful for the BBC for inviting me in & allowing me to share my thoughts.
BBC NEWS.
As of Friday 30/08/19, people with hidden disabilities in England are now also eligible to apply for blue badges.
Scope welcomed the move but said if spaces are scarce, the badges “are not worth the paper they’re printed on”.
The Local Government Association said councils regularly review parking.
Currently, about 2.35 million people with physical disabilities in England have a blue badge.
Blue badge holders are allowed to park in spaces which might be restricted to other drivers, for example parking on yellow lines for up to three hours, for free in pay and display bays, or in spaces designated “disabled”.
Under Friday’s change – which is the biggest shake-up of the blue badge scheme since it was introduced nearly 50 years ago – people with hidden disabilities, such as dementia, autism or anxiety disorders will also be eligible to apply for the permits.
However, not everyone with hidden disabilities will qualify for a badge, as it will still be up to local councils to decide if an applicant meets the eligibility criteria.
‘Life-changing’
The change has been widely welcomed by charities, including the head of the National Autistic Society, who called it a “huge relief”.
“A blue badge can be life-changing,” said Tim Nicholls, from the charity, who said many autistic people are often so anxious they may find it hard to leave the house.
Ceri Smith, policy and campaigns manager at Scope, also welcomed the move, saying it would make a “real difference” to disabled people with invisible impairments.
However she added: “But in order for it to work, it’s vital that councils issue blue badges to people who are newly eligible to apply.
“More also needs to be done by councils to ensure that there are enough allocated blue badge spaces near shops and amenities to meet increasing demand.”
It was lovely to be invited into BBC Radio Bristol recently, here is my full live interview. I was a bit nervous, got my message across though! I look forward to returning to the studio clean shaven for another chat!
😁📻 🎙 🇬🇧 ✂️
Bath, England August 2018
May 2018 🇬🇧
📷http://www.josecoello.com/
I was cast for season 17 of Coach Trip on E4 in the UK. For me this was a huge life achievement. A whopping 15,000 Brits applied to be apart of this amazingly fun show. Before I applied I had never actually seen the show. I don’t own a TV and all I knew about it is that it was a travel show. Sounds dreamy. I went right ahead and applied.
Having never seen the show before meant I had never heard of Brendan Sheerin, one of the most famous faces in the UK, a British gem. Brendan has hosted the show since 2003. He is so dedicated to this series he said he would never do any other program, even though he has been approached before.
Although I hadn’t heard of him before I was genuinely excited to be going on an adventure with probably one of the most well travelled people in the world. Brendan now 58 has explored the world over.
I enjoyed every moment I had with Brendan, He is the funnest most sassiest kind man I’ve ever met. He is also the most inspiring celebrity I’ve met. His attitude & excitement towards travel was contagious. I’ve always asked myself if I will ever stop travelling, wondering if I will hit a certain age and just settle. Brendan reassured me that maybe the free spirit adventurous nature we both share may just last a life time. I’m so grateful for every day I got to spend with Brendan. I would have loved to last the whole trip, although I am proud of how far I made it.
Theres a lot of chat on that coach that will never make it to the final cut, Brendan would fill us in with amazing and interesting facts and stories about places we were travelling to or through. These fuelled my spirit and got me so excited on all the possibilities and adventures to be had in this life, Theres just so much to learn about the world. The amount of knowledge this man has is truly inspiring.
I also had the privilege to get to know Brendan on a personal level. He took time to tell me a lot about his life and past loves, I would share my stories and struggles I’ve had in my life with my sexuality. It was almost like a counselling session, I felt so comfortable opening up to Brendan.
Coach Trip Road to Tenerife has honestly been the most amazing life experience I’ve ever had. I’m so grateful for the whole experience and its even better that it was captured. I’ll look back on these memories my whole life.
Watching back the series I got to see a whole new side to Brendan, his commentary, and attitude towards the tourist’s is not only hilarious, I also found it heart warming. I only hope I am as fun, positive & as beautiful as Brendan when I’m his age.
You’ve bought so much joy to people over the years bringing smiles to millions & you’ve inspired me like no other person I’ve met before. Where do I see myself in 20 years? Hopefully guiding fun loving tourists around the world!
I’m sure its not the last time I’ll see Brendan. Brendan is originally from Leeds, England & now lives in Malaga in Spain.
Coach Trip Road To Tenerife continues without me Mon-Fri at 7.30pm on E4
Lining up for our next activity on the Road To Tenerife with our legendary host Brendan
Day 3 on the coach & after milking some sheep Brendan has blown the budget on a boat party! Day 3 also saw the arrivals of two of my favourite girls, Blonde bombshell’s Pearl & Ruby Day from east London.
I guess you could say I got a little excited with the two new arrivals on the coach and got caught up in the moment. I noticed Brendan was hanging to the side so I decided to twerk on him. I’m not sure whether he liked it but was definitely one of my finest TV moments.
The Boat wasn’t all fun though, It was a rough ride with almost everyone getting some sort of sea sickness! The mixture of booze, excitement and having won the swimming race made me feel very nauseous. Poor Jodie copped it the worst.
Coach Trip Road to Tenerife originals day 3
Day two and we made our way to the beautiful city of San Sebastian in Spain on the border of France. We went paddle boarding, I’m not a big beachie person, I was shocked at how many of the tourists couldn’t swim/ were quite scared of the waves.
Coach Trip Day 2 San Sebastian, Spain
Smoking hot Jodie get down and sandy
Jimmy Ladgrove & Anna Richardson on Naked Attraction
Hi Studio Lambert! I hope you are all well,I just thought I’d send through some feedback for my episode that aired on Friday the 25th! As you can probably imagine I was quite nervous leading up to my episode being aired. This show really took an enormous amount of courage for me to do & I was genuinely completely out of my comfort zone. Please pass onto your hardworking team at studio lambert a big thank you for allowing me to be apart of this amazing production. Everyone I have had the pleasure to deal with from the start to the end of this production was extremely welcoming & professional towards me. Naturally I felt a bit of pressure in studio to perform & although you can’t see from the edit, I was shaking up there next to Anna at the start. Hats off to Anna and her beautiful demeanour for instantly being able to put me at ease so I had a chance for my personality to shine and so I could make the most of the moment.I wasn’t sure how I would come across with the final edit as I know any thing is really possible with post production. I am really genuinely happy with the end result and how the whole episode panned out. Although I did follow C4 social media guidelines, I also had a little peak at what people were saying. I found some really hilarious comments, I’m not one to take myself that seriously & I had a good laugh. The feedback from my friends and family has been really positive & they mentioned that I came across exactly like I do in real life.I really believe this series is having a positive effect around the UK & the world on body image and how we view ourselves. I know for a fact growing up in Australia, the only kinds of bodies I seen on TV were beach bods on Home & Away. A big reason for me deciding to do this show was to be an example and project a positive message into the world that its ok if you are attracted to people of the same sex, both or even if you are unsure. I really hope it helps some young C4 viewers who are struggling to come to terms with their sexuality.Thanks again for embracing me fully & allowing me to be myself on your show.I wish you and your studio all the best with all future episodes and productions. Hope to work with your team again in the future.I’ve just been cast for Coach Trip on E4 & I believe my naked experience gave me extra confidence to stand out in my audition.Much love!Jimmy Ladgrove
Jimmy Ladgrove on Naked Attraction
I was honoured to be cast to be a face of Contiki’s new advertising campaign for 2018. Contiki is a great travel brand that has inspired me to travel since I was around 14. Contiki have a range of tours to suit all sorts of travellers. Whether you like sight seeing or partying. They are also great for solo travellers.
Contiki is a great Travel Corporation-operated coach tour company operating in Europe, Russia, Egypt, Australia, New Zealand, North America, South America, and Asia. They organise trips for 18-30 year olds. I highly recommend you follow their social media accounts to get inspired!
Video is now online on Facebook, youtube, instagram and on their website from January 2018
Travel will change you.
Secrets out, The reality road trip heads to Tenerife! Under the watchful eye of tour guide Brendan the legend, I was 1 of the very lucky few out of the 15,000 applicants to gain a spot on Brendans legendary coach. 14 new hot tourists kick off an epic 40-day tour. There’s just one catch – the least popular people get voted off.
Coach Trip Road To Tenerife trailer
My interview with The Bristol Post
I’ve set a new coach trip record with my bff Jodie Carnall , you’ll have to tune in to see all the drama & absolute lols! This season there’s a very interesting vote twist which changes the course of the game. You can expect more romance in this series than any other with legendary Love Island producer Laura Woolf on board the coach.
This time, there will be six pairings who know each other, plus two solo travellers, Jodie and myself. We will all be competing to stay in the competition.
Coach Trip Road to Tenerife original cast
It all kicks off in Biarritz in the south of France E4 Mon 08 Jan, 7.30pm
Jimmy is a solo traveller. He is 26 and living in Bristol. Originally from Australia, Jimmy had always dreamt of travelling the world. He has spent the last 8 years backpacking around the USA and the UK, and now wants to travel around Europe! Sounds like the coach is the right place for him to be. He loves his 12 inch beard and hasn’t shaved for 3 years. His essential item on the coach will be his beard oil.
How would you describe yourself?
I’d describe my personality as cheeky, adventurous, fun, a little bit wild, and a bit whacky sometimes.
Are you a worldly traveller?
Yeah, I’d definitely describe myself as worldly. I have done a lot of travelling in the past 8 years, around Australia, North America, the UK and quite a bit of Europe, so I guess I’d see myself as a pro traveller.
Do you have any bad habits?
One of my worst habits is just not having the ability to sit still. I’m bored easily and always looking for my next adventure. I sort of can’t stay in the same place for a long time without having to wander off and see somewhere new.
Would you like a holiday romance?
So I am single. I’ve been single for 4 years, and I am looking. I identify as pansexual, which means I’m open to pretty much anyone so means I’m attracted to all people, and gender is irrelevant. So I’m really looking forward to potentially meeting someone on the Coach Trip.
What would you like to get out of the trip?
The one thing I’d like to come away with from this coach trip is just to see new places that I haven’t seen before. I’m really hoping I can stay on there for as long as possible so I can see as much of Europe as possible.
What are people’s first impressions of you?
Peoples first impressions of me when they meet me are like “Woah, beard!” Basically I just hear “beard”. Sometimes not even a hello, just “beard” or “Gandalf” some people shout at me
What kind of person would you like to be paired up with on the coach?
When it comes to who I’m gonna be paired up with, I’m really open to anything but at the end of the day, I wouldn’t mind if it was someone I felt a connection with and maybe something blossomed on the trip. Who knows? Anything’s possible.
What kind of person would you least like to travel with?
I can’t stand when people are late. That’s probably my number one.
Do you have any fears or phobias?
I do have a fear of heights. I have been trying to conquer that fear. I’ve been on the world’s tallest drop, thinking that would calm my fear of heights. That’s when I’m completely out of my comfort zone – when I’m up in high places.
Have you ever had a brush with fame?
Yeah, I met a lot of famous people when working in Hollywood. I also won a competition to have a date with Kim Kardashian, which was seven years ago, when I was a student. I’ve also challenged Bear Grylls at a game of AUSSIE pong, and was Katy Perry’s server for the night once.
The Queen is a massive fan of Coach Trip and has palace staff tape it so she NEVER misses an episode
Jimmy & Brendan from Coach Trip Road to Tenerife
Jimmy & Jodie from Coach trip #teamjj
Jimmy Ladgrove & Jodie Carnall on Coach Trip – Road to Tenerife
Jimmy & Jodie Coach Trip Road to Tenerife
Coach Trip Day 1- Biarritz, France
Coach Trip Day 2 – San Sebastian, Spain
Coach Trip Day 3 – Bilbao, Spain
Coach Trip day 4 – Santander, Spain
Coach Trip Day 5 – Gijion, Spain
Coach Trip day 6 – Asturias hills, Spain
Coach Trip Day 7 – La Coruña, Spain
Coach Trip Day 8 – Santiago De Compostela
I’ve done a few shows now & although the networks don’t encourage it, it’s quite amusing to see the things strangers say about you on twitter! Everyones entitled to their opinion and I knew what I was signing myself up to. I arrived back into the UK after filming my new show abroad (Coach Trip – Road to Tenerife) & I daringly typed in Jimmy Naked attraction into twitter and this is what I found… Bless them for taking time out of there day to comment on me.
Jimmy on Naked Attraction. Full story & Interview
Jimmy Ladgrove and Anna Richardson on Naked Attraction
Yikes!
A style thats taken me almost 4 years to achieve. Think its here to stay? yay or nay..
Jimmy Ladgrove & Anna Richardson on Naked Attraction
If you were to ask me what the scariest thing I’ve ever done last month I would probably have said leaving the familiarity of my home country and moving to the UK & US. Fast forward to now & I have just officially done the craziest, scariest thing in my life. I got completely naked on prime time British Television.
Did I just wake up one day and think. Ok I’m gonna get naked on TV? Well…
It all started when I was over at my best friend Chloe’s flat in Bristol. Chloe always has the TV on in the Background, She was telling me about this new naked dating show called Naked Attraction. I had not long finished filming Undressed , another raunchy British TV show. [Undressed does require you to take your clothes off but not completely naked.] Chloe showed me the show & I was genuinely shocked at what I was seeing. I haven’t watched TV for years, and have probably only watched about 3 hours of TV in the 2 & a half years I’ve lived in England. I straight away thought WTF is going on. It was intriguing viewing though & at the same time quite interesting & entertaining! Laughing together Chloe joked that I should do this show next. I straight out said No, that is legit the last thing on earth I would do! I’m confident but not that confident!
A few months later I seen an advert from one of the casting producers on Facebook, I had been friends with him since he stalked me down and encouraged me to apply for another British show called Take me out. I was in Australia at the time of that shows filming so didn’t bother. The advert looked a little something like this.
Due to the massive success of season one , It had instantly been renewed for another season! It was rating really high with millions of brits tuning in to laugh and cringe.
I had gave it some thought, a lot actually & without sounding too cocky, I knew if I applied I would most likely get on it. I knew they would be interested in a confident Bearded 20 something year old Australian that hasn’t man-scapped in over 3 years. I knew they would be looking for a diverse range of people. I watched the rest of the episodes & thought this could be fun! I really liked the host Anna, I thought she was hilarious. So I went right ahead and sent a few cheeky photos. I applied as a bi-sexual man that prefers men.
I’d received a response the next day saying that they would love to speak to me. I responded and asked when filming was as I was due to go on holiday for a month in Australia. They gave me the dates and said for me to contact them again when I’m back in the country. I had a nice month in Australia to really think about what I’m about to get myself into. I had talked about it with close friends and family, to mixed reactions as expected! Although I knew I could make my own decisions, their opinion did matter to me.
I mentioned the format of the show, and showed off some screen grabs. I said how its a really fun, fascinating show that contains full uncensored nudity that would never air in a country like Australia. Its a world first created by the same production company that thought of goggle-box & undercover boss.
On the plane back to the UK, I thought about it again. I was really focusing on the pros and cons and what thoughts were coming to my mind. The thought of it truly did scare the shite out of me. I remembered back to one of my favourite quotes from Bear Grylls, “Life begins at the end of your comfort zone”. Also the ” Try and do things that scare you” . I am a self confessed experience junky & I absolutely love being out of my comfort zone. I have always lived with a you only live once kind of attitude. I pondered whether this could ruin my life or not. Would I ever be able to live it down?
So I arrived back in the UK, contacted them to let them know I’m back in England.
I was swiftly offered a time slot to come to the London studios for an audition. I had been away from Chloe for a month so decided to make it a little London Adventure, I had wanted to see where Chloe was raised and meet her parents for a while now, So we were able to make all that happen while casually getting my clothes off in the centre of London.
The Audition.
It was a fairly bizarre experience, it was held at Studio Lambert in Denmark street which is smack bang in the centre of London, It wasn’t at a TV studio or anything, this is just a flashy shiny big office. I arrived and had to fill out more paperwork then my visa applications in USA & UK put together. Signing my life away quite swiftly, I was then ushered up stairs where there was a full floor of staff working away, off course every single one stared as I was taken in to a meeting room where the windows had been covered in non transparent paper. Inside that meeting room was a white wall, 1 camera, 1 big light & two men. One was a producer on the show, and the other was the show casting researcher that had found me online. Both lovely men. As expected I was asked a lot about my dating history, life and basically anything else. Half way through it was time to take off my clothes. Something I knew I had to do, It didn’t really bother me although I was a bit embarrassed because the nerves and the coldness of London had made my nut suck shrivel into my body & my willy to turn into a wrinkled elephant trunk. I just laughed and carried on talking to two complete strangers about whether or not I like pubic hair, ect. Although I was auditioning for Pan/Bisexual round, We mainly talked about my history with boys. I let them know I had been with more men in my life and prefer men but am open to being with female and have in the past.
After a few very awkward poses, which included me standing still while they zoom up on my little jimmy & my hairy ass, I was asked to do some modelling/blue steel action. Something I had never really done naked, felt a bit awkie.
I left the audition feeling confident. I knew they found me interesting and I knew that theres a high chance I’ll be on the show.
A week later I received a phone call. It was to say the network and producers really like me and would like me to be on the show. I asked them whether I’d be a picker or in a box, as I had previously made it clear that I am only interested in doing the show If I am a picker. They couldn’t let me know at that stage as they were still finalising all the casting.
I was told I would be on the gay episode which I was fine with. I then received news that they had already secured the pickers for the gay episodes. I was then asked if I would be interested in going on a Bi or Pan-sexual round. Which I actually would have preferred to be. I thought it would be a lot more interesting choosing between male & female!
So I was invited back to London to film some more clips about my history with women and what It means to be Pansexual. I had let them know I have never been a fan of labels , although If you were to label me I would fit more into the label Pansexual.
So what is Pansexuality?
Pansexual is a term where someone is attracted to all genders! Therefor male/female, gay/straight/bi/trans & even people that don’t feel they fit into a gender. To me it basically means I have the ability to love and be sexually attracted to anyone! It doesn’t matter if they have a willy or fanny basically. I could like a man with feminine traits, or I could like a tom boy with a vagina.
The term was fairly new to me, in-fact I had only heard about it about a year ago when Miley Cyrus came out on social media as Pansexual. Growing up people had always tried to put me in a box and label me. Everyone including myself knew I was a little different. I guess gay was the easiest and most generic label. Everyone would call me that from my siblings and their friends to my father and his friends. I guess I had just accepted this label before I even knew If I was or not.
Naked attraction at the time had not yet done a Pansexual round. It was exciting that I would be the first! It meant that I could even have a transgender person in one of the boxes. I had never dated a trans before but am certainly open to the experience. The thought of having a trans in my episode was exciting to me!
What are your reasons for doing this? What goes through someones mind when choosing to do something this bizarre & brave?
Jimmy Ladgrove on Naked Attraction date 2017
If you are living and working in the UK be sure to apply for a EHIC (European Health Insurance Card) It is free of charge! be careful of websites who try and charge you for it!
A valid European Health Insurance Card gives you the right to access state-provided healthcare during a temporary stay in another European Economic Area (EEA) country or Switzerland.
The EHIC covers treatment that is medically necessary until your planned return home. Treatment should be provided on the same basis as it would to a resident of that country, either at a reduced cost or, in many cases, for free. For example, in some countries, patients are expected to directly contribute a percentage towards the cost of their state-provided treatment. This is known as a patient co-payment. If you receive treatment under this type of healthcare system, you are expected to pay the same co-payment charge as a patient from that country
Please Note: The EHIC is not an alternative to travel insurance. It will not cover any private medical healthcare or costs, such as mountain rescue in ski resorts, being flown back to the UK, or lost or stolen property. It is also not valid on cruises.
It is therefore important to have both an EHIC and a valid private travel insurance policy in place before you travel. Some insurers now insist you hold an EHIC, and many will waive the excess if you have one.
If you are Australian, you will have to apply by post and send a copy of your UK visa. The website claims the turnaround time is 21 days & you will receive your card within 10 days of your claim being processed. Its handy to note you can still travel with out it, if you end up needing treatment you can request a certificate from the hospital you are at.
http://www.nhs.uk/nhsengland/healthcareabroad/ehic/pages/about-the-ehic.aspx.
It is similar to the Medicare Reciprocal Health Care Agreements in Australia. Only it covers more countries!
https://www.humanservices.gov.au/customer/services/medicare/reciprocal-health-care-agreements
“Picture in a frame”
Music by Tom Waits
Written, Directed, Edited and Shot by Indigo Lane
Starring Jimmy James Ladgrove
Guest Appearance Boris Lane
I deserve a bloody oscar for this performance!
Bristol England 2017
Jimmy Ladgrove Photoshoot. Bristol, England. ©Sam J Burdall Photography 2017
It all started when I responded to this advert. I had seen it at work. It really spoke to me. Yes I was in fact looking for love in all the wrong places again. I was coming up to two years living in the UK and was thinking I am fairly settled here in Bristol. All that was missing is somebody to love, as much as I love solo travel. I thought It would be nice to have a partner in crime to join me on my trips. So I went and sent them an email, I was sent back an application form. It asked me various questions about my past relationships , hobbies , my sexuality, my ideal partner ect.
So what is Undressed? It was a hit show in Italy so it soon made it’s way over to the UK & Australia.
Is it possible to fall in love with a complete stranger? In 30 minutes? Whilst undressed? Undressed is a dating show that accelerates intimacy and explores the accepted rules of attraction. The bold, innovative and experimental show sees two perfect strangers undress each other and climb into bed on their first date. During the season, singletons in search of a soul mate spend 30 minutes alone together in bed, wearing nothing but their underwear. Inspired by social science surrounding the rules of intimacy, a supersized screen acts as an icebreaker, posing probing questions. At the end of the 30 minutes, they must each reveal if they think they’ve made a connection or a dating disaster. Part dating show, part social experiment, Undressed strips away the trappings of material possessions to focus on just one thing – the real person laid bare. It’s provocative, it’s unpredictable, it’s irresistibly watchable. Full of fascinating stories, awkward moments and heart-warming exchanges.
Although I know you can’t hurry love, I was quite swift with sending the application back with a recent photo. I was invited for a Skype interview with the producer. This lasted around 30 mins from memory, It was just a casual chat. Getting to know each other. I was then told it would be recorded and shown to other members of the production team. I was told I’d be contacted if I was invited to the next round of Auditions. A few days had passed and I received an email saying the network were keen on getting to know me more in person.
Some of the team were coming to bristol the following week for auditions and invited me. I accepted. I went to the audition which was conveniently located in a hotel next to my work. I filled out a fair amount of paper work & then it was time for me to go into the room. I was asked to take of my clothes down to my underwear. The camera would be rolling and there were two lovely young girls in the room, one asking me questions, while the other took notes. I was nervous at start but once I got going I was fine.
By the end of my audition I honestly feel like these girls knew more about me then most of my friends would. I would tell them my whole life story. I didn’t know where to start, I realised I have done quite a bit with myself and my life so I didn’t stop talking for quite a while. I left the audition feeling positive, I had a good feeling I was suited and that I came across well.
I was asked loads of questions about my ideal partner. My previous relationships. What I’m looking for , where I see myself in 5 years ect.
At the time of my audition , I had been through quite a dry spell in the world of gay dating in Bristol. I had given up on tinder, grinder. I was sick of guys telling me to shave and making rude remarks about my facial hair. There was absolutely no way I was shaving for anyone. I had just joined plenty of fish, but they wanted my money for me to see my matches.
I was very open to this new concept of dating. I had previously been on the show Dating in the Dark as a 19 year old. I didn’t have much luck on that show but it was certainly a great experience.My Dating in the Dark experience
I liked the idea of being stripped bare at the start of a date. I for one have not always been body confident. Coming from Sunny Australia where all the TV shows have tanned hairless beach bods. Also having lived in Los angeles, a very image conscious city. I can’t tan. I never have been able to. These days I have just about as much hair on my body as my face. I gave up on waxing years ago. I realised you are never going to be able to please all your potential lovers. I know there will be someone that will like me for all of me. Beard, back beard, sack beard, everything.
I decided not to trim or wax at all for the show. After all this show isn’t a modelling competition. I wanted to go onto the show, hair and all.
I was also asked if I would be open to dating a transexual. To which said I am not sure. As I have not even ever met a transexual person.
I also like the idea of being matched! I know they had hired some professional match makers for this. The casting producers knew absolutely everything about me. I thought they are either going to match me with someone awkward to make some funny TV or they are gonna match me with a babe.
The whole experience was a real thrill, I received a phone call notifying me that they had found me a match. The man on the phone said we really think you are going to like them, which was really exciting fore me..
I was open to them finding me a girl or boy I really didn’t mind, although I didn’t know until the day the sex of my potential lover.
It turns out me and my potential lover had holidays the same time. I was told they would have finished up filming by the time we got back. They wanted us to be apart of the show so much they re scheduled other dates to fit us in! This meant I only actually had 3 days notice that I would be on the show. I found out the friday, that I would be filming on the monday. I was so thrilled that I was officially going to be on the show. I was mega excited in many ways. Mainly I couldn’t wait to see who they matched me with!
I was told I would not be able to wear any branded underwear for the show. I only own designer underwear and had just got a nice delivery of aussie bum. I was suggested to go to H&M and buy some. That I did. I got them home tried them on and thought to my self. No way am I going on television in these disgusting panties. I had a mini panic attack and went back down to the mall to try and find some more flattering jocks. I did end up finding some at TK Maxx , a discount designer shop. I was not feeling as comfortable as I do in my diesel underwear but they’ll do.
I received confirmation of my travel. I would be catching a train from Bristol in to London at 11am. This wasnt to bad at all, I was expecting them to put me on the first train out of bristol at like 5am.
This time gave me enough time to ease into my morning. I ran a hot bath , and was gonna soothe my way into the day. I was just about to get into the bath when my phone rang. It was the show, they said the timings had changed and they would actually need me to get the 10am train instead! Although I had a mild heart attack, I agreed. This gave me around an hour to get bathed and make it to the station. I just made it!
The train ride was peaceful. I was listening to some trashy pop to calm the nerves.
Although I’d been on many sets before & even been on a dating show. Theres no hiding the nerves. Nerves effect people in different ways. For me these nerves I’ve felt before, they effect my metabolism and digestive system. I had been anxious although excited that whole weekend. Theres not polite way to say this , but lets just say I had the runs! Stomach cramps, not fun.
Arriving to London, I needed to swap trains and make my way to wembley. There was a big black shiny production vehicle waiting to collect me. When we arrived to the studios, it felt like it was some kind of top secret mission. Walkie talkies coordinating all the movements. To ensure I don’t see my date. I was then held hostage in a little dressing room. I had a nice lady assigned to supervise me, her job was to chat to me & help calm the nerves. Her job also is to stop me from running away. Nerves can get the better of some people which makes some chicken out last minute. This lady did a good job of taking my mind of the fact I was about to get stripped by a complete stranger in a room full of cameras. There were around 20-30 people working on the show.
It was my turn to go into the studio for the pre interviews. I had done this before and it can be quite an awkward situation. You are sat on a chair with big warm studio lights on you. You have a gigantic camera in your face & then you have the producer to the left of the camera. Her job is to get as many answers and reactions from me as possible. I was a bit disappointed with my lack of control when it came to my nerves. They do get you to repeat the answer a few times as well as try and put the question in the answer. Although I knew they would only use a few seconds here and there for the episode its just really exhausting being asked so many questions. Especially when you are worried about how you are going to look behind all the nerves.
I remember I was so hot that I was sweating loads. I am quite hairy and sweat quite a bit any way , so if you were to put heat lights in front of me it aint gonna be pretty.
After the pre interviews I was taken back to the dressing room for some more down time. I looked at my shirt and it has sweat patches everywhere! It was quite a tight shirt so it really picked up a lot of my sweat. I panicked a bit, I said I cant go in there with all these sweat patches! A member of the team then when and got a hair dryer, I stripped off and dried up all the sweat.
It was then time to go into the bedroom studio. I was first up, meaning I would be the one waiting on the bed for my date to come in. There was still a bit of down time, I was given a little walk through of where to go when the cameras were rolling.
I seen on the projection screen the name Jimmy & Oli was on there. I then knew that they had in fact found me a boy! I was a little relieved to be honest , as I have mainly dated guys in my life.
It was time to film! I had a bit of adrenaline walking into the room. I sat down and then waited patiently for my date to walk in. I felt like the pressure was on, It is after all unscripted for the next 30 minutes. We shook each others hand and introduced each other. I couldn’t wipe the nervous smile of me. I felt at ease when he greeted me with a big warm smile. We only had enough time to introduce ourselves, then all of a sudden the big projector made a noise and the words undress each other popped up.
Now it was who’s gonna go first. I jumped in quickly and undressed him first. I figured that way I’m not in my underwear trying to undress this man.
My first impressions of Oli were , wow he is a babe. What a beautiful smile. He was basically what I had described as kind of guy I’d go for. He was the right height, great body, really nice eyes & a beautiful olive complexion.
We undressed each other. The screen then said lie on the bed. I was actually really excited to get to know Oli. Once we were on the bed I felt a lot more comfortable. I completely forgot there were about 8 cameras pointing at us.
The date went really smoothly, they obviously don’t have time to air everything. There were no awkward pauses. The screen would put various photos and ask certain questions to keep the date flowing and keep things interesting.
Oli and I bonded over places we’ve been and places we want to go. Oli & I both shared similar interests not just in travelling but we also liked theatre. He was a really easy going guy. I honestly thought we had a spark. When it asked us about kissing , I was very eager to get involved!
The date was really over and it said you have 30 seconds , would you like to ask each other any other questions. I then asked Oli if he would like to go to dinner tonight. He said yes.
After filming we both got dropped off to the train station , caught the train into central London, we went to a nice park and lied on the grass and got to know each other more. We were quite tired from our day as well as I had just finished working a 58hour week. So it was just nice to relax a little. We shared a nice dinner together. We then walked around. Things went really well we called it date 2.0.
I had mentioned to Oli that I was flying back into London from Berlin in two weeks. We agreed it would be a nice chance to see each other again. We exchanged numbers and had been texting on and off for a few weeks. I honestly thought it could go somewhere. We both lived busy lives, although I was keen on getting to know London more & Oli mentioned he had never been to Bristol. I was excited to show him this beautiful city. I also thought I had found a nice travel buddy. Someone I could take trips together.
My flight coming into London was cancelled. There were no additional flights that day so I had to stay in Berlin another night. I didn’t mind as I was having a great time there. I text this to him. I never got a response.
I then text him a few weeks later to let him know I had been doing some press around the show and I hope to see him again one day.
No response
That was the end of Oli & I. It bummed me out again. I won’t be hung up on it though! It is his loss if he doesn’t want to know me.
It made me realise I am not going to waste my time looking for someone, it was a fun experience and its ashamed it didn’t work out. I’m just going to carry on being single and traveling the world solo.
I agreed to do some press around the show. The producers had decided to use an old photo of Kim Kardashian and I. So they used this to pitch stories to the media. It was successful and I did interviews for the Bristol post, as well as The Mirror which is Britains 2nd biggest paper. The click bait headlines were absolutely hilarious and I got a real laugh out of it.
I attended THE British Beard championships on the weekend. This was my first ever competition. The comp started back in 2012 in Brighton, this year it was in Liverpool. I travelled from Bristol to attend.
It is now one of the biggest in the world coming second to the one in the USA. People come from all corners of the globe , although mainly Europe. I was the only one who was entering from Australia.
Hundreds of hairy hopefuls like myself battled it out in 20 categories including Musketeer, Amish/Whaler, Handlebar, Fake and Freestyle. They even have a category for women & children.
Upon entering the amazing St Georges Hall my beard was measured for the first time. It was right on 12inches. It meant I had a few categories I could choose from. one being full natural beard over 12 inches with styled moustache , or full natural beard under twelve inches with styled moustache. Although I don’t normally style my moustache I thought I would for the special occasion. I was going to go into over 12 inches styled moustache but learnt there were only two other competitors in that category. That meant I had a guaranteed place. I thought theres not much fun in that so entered into the one with 15 other men.
Although I didn’t get a place, I had a really great weekend which starts on the friday at the pre party, continues all day saturday well into the night, and then another gathering on the sunday. People gathered from all around the world and there were around 150 competing.
I wasn’t disappointed that I didn’t get a place as I got to meet a lot of really interesting people including my idol Michael Legge who is the current British championship holder. Liverpool is also a city I’ve wanted to visit since moving to the UK its a great vibrant, beautiful city with a lot of interesting history.
I made page four news in the Bristol post Wednesday 19th October 2016.
Upfest is Europes largest Street Art and Graffiti Festival. In 2016 over 700 artists registered their interest for a spot in the festival. 300 are chosen. It is held in Bedminster which is south of the river. About a 15 minute walk from the centre of Bristol.
It’s my favourite festival in Bristol, It runs for 3 days is at the end of July. The artists basically paint over the whole street, from humungous landmark Buildings such as the Tobacco factory , to shop shutters. It’s great as you get to watch the artists live. It’s a great atmosphere and there is loads of street vendors, selling all sorts of tasty treats and merch. As well as great live music
UPfest 2016 , Bristol England from james ladgrove on Vimeo.
Bristol is my favourite city I’ve ever lived in. The friendly people, the laid back lifestyle & the music & arts scene keep me here. Its easy to get to and easy to get out of. Bristol will be my base while I am living in England. I will wander to other european cities, but I’ll always come back to Bristol.